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About the Show
Tom Ashbrook in the studio

Tom Ashbrook in the studio

On Point is the fastest growing talk show on NPR — two hours broadcast daily across the country, hosted by award-winning journalist Tom Ashbrook. The show’s lively conversation covers everything from breaking news to ancient poetry, with newsmakers, thinkers, journalists, artists, scientists and ordinary citizens from around the world.

Broadcast live from 10 a.m. to noon ET, with listener call-in, from WBUR in Boston, the show airs throughout the day on 120 NPR stations coast to coast.

Here’s what Tom has to say about the show:

In ballet, “on point” means up on your toes.

In war, it’s the lead soldier on patrol

In conversation it’s the heart of the matter.

That’s where we strive to be every day with our listeners — up on our toes, out front, at the heart of what’s going on.

Here at On Point, we’re looking to create a different kind of conversation about the country and the world we live in — about who we are, and where we’re going. Maybe it’s the kind of national conversation you’ve always wanted. Fast, fun, serious, surprising. Open to everyone. And above all, unflinchingly honest. With voices from all over the planet. Fresh voices. Passionate voices.

On Point was born in the immediate aftermath of the attacks of 9/11, when the country was looking for answers and impatient with old certitudes. We still carry that urgency today: to test, challenge, and probe. And while we do it, to celebrate the people, arts and ideas that make life a joy.

We hope you’ll add your voice to the On Point conversation — on the air, and here online. We look forward to hearing from you.

-Tom Ashbrook

On Point staff

Tom Ashbrook is On Point’s host and managing editor. Jack Beatty, On Point’s news analyst, appears each Friday on our Week in the News roundtable and on other shows throughout the week.

On Point’s senior producer is Wen Stephenson. Our senior editor is Karen Shiffman. Our team of producers includes Julie Diop, Eileen Imada, Stefano Kotsonis, Hilary Barngrove McQuilkin, Tania Ralli, and John Wihbey, with assistance from Pien Huang, Sam Gale Rosen, Silvia Spring, and interns Samina Uddin and Will Roseliep. Our technical director is James Ross.

On Point’s website is designed and maintained by WBUR’s New Media department.

* * *

On Point airs live nationally each day from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET, and is rebroadcast at various times throughout the day. See a list of NPR stations that air the show.

If you are a program director interested in learning more about On Point, please call us at 617-358-1468. For all other queries, please contact us here.

On Point Today
Hour 2
Malcolm Gladwell’s ‘Outliers’
Thursday, November 20, 2008 Malcolm Gladwell

The “Tipping Point” master Malcolm Gladwell talks about the ecology of success and where the super-successful get their edge.

Comments [36]
 
Hour 1
Unemployment Survival
Thursday, November 20, 2008 Jobseekers look for employment opportunities and work on resumes at WorkSource California in Los Angeles Friday, Nov. 7, 2008. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

Unemployment is rising fast, and America’s social safety net isn’t what it used to be. We talk about surviving the new economic reality.

Comments [15]

Recent Shows
Novelist Amitav Ghosh
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 Sea of Poppies

Novelist Amitav Ghosh talks about 19th-century India and the opium trade in his sweeping new epic, “Sea of Poppies.”

Comments [2]
 
Secretary of State Clinton?
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama at a rally in Steinbrenner Stadium in Tampa, Fl on Monday, October 20, 2008. (David Katz/Obama for America)

Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State? The right choice? We’ll look at the potential implications for Obama’s foreign policy and the presidency.

Comments [31]
On Point Blog
The Party of Obama…
By Jack Beatty

Speaking to Tom in today’s second hour, Stanford historian David Kennedy noted that few would have predicted that the Democrats would nominate the nation’s first African-American president. The Democrats only “came over” on civil rights in the 1960s. The party of slavery before the Civil War, the Democrats espoused white supremacy after. Not one [...]

More » | Comments [1]
 
Listening back on the ‘08 campaign…
By Wen Stephenson

As you count down the hours to the end of this long, long election campaign, if you’re tired of staring at the endless polls and projection maps, here’s an excuse to give your eyeballs a rest and just use your ears for a while.
Clicking back through our ‘08 campaign archive just now, four shows leapt [...]

More »
 
Enemies Within…
By Wen Stephenson

Sure, there’s a Halloween sound to our second hour today — a conversation with historian John Demos about his new book, “The Enemy Within: 2,000 Years of Witch-Hunting in the Western World.” But it strikes a more profound theme than trick-or-treating, one that still resonates.
Demos himself puts it this way in the book’s prologue:
Witch-hunting, large [...]

More »